US Embassy warns Americans about possible plague in RF, Trump to talk with Putin

The US Embassy in Russia has issued a medical alert for American citizens due to reports of a possible case of pneumonic plague in the Irkutsk region. At the same time, US President Donald Trump said that in the near future he plans to discuss the situation by phone with Vladimir Putin.

The US Embassy message of October 6 says that the diplomatic mission is aware of media reports about suspected pneumonic plague, which caused the death of a person, as well as about quarantine measures and closing of hospitals in Irkutsk.

The Embassy noted that it continues to monitor the situation. Americans in the region were urged to follow the recommendations of local health authorities, avoid medical facilities affected by restrictions, and seek medical care immediately if fever or respiratory symptoms appear.

Those who were in the area of a possible outbreak were advised to monitor their health for 14 days after the trip. The Embassy also reminded citizens about the need to have an emergency evacuation plan that does not depend on the help of the US government.

At the same time, Washington has not introduced a new general call to leave Russia specifically due to possible plague. In the medical alert, the Embassy reminded about the current recommendation of the US State Department of level four - not to travel to Russia, and American citizens who are already there to leave immediately. This recommendation is in effect because of security risks, the war against Ukraine, and the threat of wrongful detention of Americans.

In light of the situation in the Irkutsk region, Trump told reporters on October 6 that he has a scheduled telephone conversation with Putin. According to him, it will take place "very soon", and one of the issues will be the possible case of plague in the Siberian research institute. The US President also said that the American side is conducting "very deep discussions" about the situation and expects to receive more information.

This concerns the death of an employee of the Irkutsk Anti-Plague Research Institute of Siberia and the Far East. Russian authorities claim that the cause was pneumonia of unknown origin and that laboratory tests did not confirm infection with pathogens of especially dangerous infections. At the same time, the reports of possible pneumonic plague caused quarantine measures and attracted the attention of international organizations.

The World Health Organization reported that it is in contact with the Russian side. According to WHO's assessment, available data currently do not indicate a pandemic-scale situation, and the risk of spread beyond Russia is assessed as very low.

Earlier, Trump stated the readiness of the US to help Russia if necessary due to the situation around the possible disease.

Sources: US Embassy in Russia, White House, Associated Press